


I'm Best With You

by shesbreathless



Series: levi gets stabbed au [3]
Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: Fluff, I hate tagging, M/M, Pizza, Stitches, i guess, it's just the interns being idiots and nico being amazing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-15
Updated: 2019-07-15
Packaged: 2020-06-29 01:28:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19819711
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shesbreathless/pseuds/shesbreathless
Summary: “Have you still not had your stitches taken out?” Nico accuses him.“I haven’t had time,” Levi tries to justify himself. “And nobody wanted to, anyway.”“Yeah, ‘cause you screamed bloody murder every time somebody tried,” Dahlia mumbles.





	I'm Best With You

“And did you see the way she made it look so effortless?”

Levi opens the door, jamming his foot under it to keep it open until they’ve all walked through it. Taryn doesn’t even notice the difference between being indoors and outdoors, too busy talking all of their heads off about how great Dr. Grey is. Levi would complain about the chatter, but he definitely agrees with her.

They’re all carrying their lunches in bags or containers, and they’re planning on eating outside the hospital, taking advantage of the sun shining on them. They’re supposed to meet Nico there, have a little lunch hangout together. Levi came prepared with his container of baby carrots.

“I wanted to stand up and clap at the end, honestly,” Casey shrugs.

The rest of them hum in agreement, heads still full of the surgery they got to observe and the way it blew all of their minds. They’re so focused on recalling every single detail, lest they forget even one movement of Dr. Grey’s magical hands, that when they reach the stairs they just plop down on random steps.

Nico is there, and he looks around in surprise when he suddenly gets a lapful of Levi, who fits himself between Nico’s legs one step lower than him, sliding his arms under and around Nico’s shins and leaning his head back to rest in his lap.

“Well, hi,” Nico chuckles.

Levi smiles at him with his eyes closed and puckers his lips for a quick kiss. Nico complies with a happy hum in the back of his throat, greeting the group of people sitting around him. They all immediately go back to their conversation as if the change in scenery and company hadn’t happened.

“I wonder if we’ll ever be as good as her,” Dahlia sighs, laying back against the step behind her.

“I doubt it, she’s just magic,” Taryn nods resolutely, and that is the end of the conversation.

Nico gently taps on Levi’s forehead, forcing him to squint his eyes open and look at his upside down face in question. He traces his index finger up from his chin, over his lips, along the bridge of his nose, until he can bury all of them in the mess of his hair. Levi leans into the touch, squeezing Nico’s ankles.

“I’m hungry for real food,” Levi complains. “Something heavy, and greasy, and _so_ good.”

“I think I saw pasta in the cafeteria this morning,” Casey perks up.

“And that’s supposed to make me happy?” Levi raises one eyebrow. “It’s the worst pasta I’ve ever had.”

“The pizza is worse,” Casey argues. “I’m pretty sure it’s partly made of leather.”

“Guys, now I’m craving pizza,” Taryn complains. “And I don’t have any laying around, so shut up.”

Levi is about to answer and probably convince them all to get some real food, but Nico beats him to it.

“I can make you guys pizza sometime,” he suggests. “Levi can tell you how good it is.”

The whole group of interns turns around to look at him with a serious expression on their faces. Levi watches Nico glance at them all with a smile, obviously having no idea what he’s getting himself into.

“You would do that?” Dahlia asks, as serious as Levi has ever seen her.

“Of course, whenever you want,” Nico nods. “We could even do it tonight.”

“Tonight?” they’re all gawking at this point, and Levi is having a hard time not laughing at Nico’s increasingly concerned face.

“Yeah, sure,” Nico shrugs. “Come over after work, I’ll have everything ready by then.”

Silence follows his statement, as if they’re all processing what Nico just said. Levi picks up a carrot and loudly crunches it between his back teeth, waiting for somebody to say or do something.

“Levi,” Casey is the first to speak after a while, squinting at Nico with a smirk.

“Yes.”

“I like him,” Casey decides, nodding once.

Taryn and Dahlia quietly agree, going back to their own lunches. Levi looks up at Nico and admires how adorably confused he looks. He offers him a carrot.

“Me too,” he finally answers Casey, causing a whole chorus of fake gagging noises to erupt around him.

Nico smiles and blushes imperceptibly, but Levi can still see it. He slides his hands down Levi’s front and pats his chest, squeezing his shoulders with his legs. He dips his head down to give Levi an upside down kiss on the lips, then steals the container of carrots for himself.

“Hey!” Levi complains, turning around and uselessly reaching for it. “I need to eat!”

Smiling with his mouth closed to avoid showing everyone how well his teeth can crunch the food, Nico picks out one carrot and holds it out for Levi to bite. Of course, Levi takes advantage of that to bite the tip of his index finger as well.

“Actually,” Casey interrupts them. “It’s probably better if you don’t eat too much.”

Levi shoots him a look that he wishes could strangle him, while Nico turns to look at him with a confused expression.

“Why?” he asks Casey.

“I don’t want him throwing up on me,” Casey explains.

“Why would he…” Nico starts, then suddenly stops and turns back to Levi.

He slides his hands from the middle of Levi’s chest to the side before he can slip away from him. Levi guiltily watches his face get shadowed by disappointment.

“Have you still not had your stitches taken out?” Nico accuses him.

“I haven’t had time,” Levi tries to justify himself. “And nobody wanted to, anyway.”

“Yeah, ‘cause you screamed bloody murder every time somebody tried,” Dahlia mumbles.

Levi glares at her, but she doesn’t even pay attention to him. Turning back to Nico, he tries flashing his cutest smile to buy his forgiveness. Nico shakes his head and laughs at him, but at least he doesn’t look mad. He pats the side of Levi’s face and feeds him another carrot.

“You’re going now, though, right?” he asks.

“There’s this thing I need to do for Dr. Bailey…” Levi starts, but Nico immediately interrupts him.

“If you don’t do it now, I’m not making pizza tonight.”

Taryn, Dahlia and Casey stop scarfing down their food to stare intently at Levi. He would laugh if it didn’t feel like they would jump him if he said anything different than what they want to hear. Which is that he’ll let Casey cut into him in order for them to get their pizza. He’s never liked peer pressure.

“You’re all awful,” he decides, standing up abruptly. “Let’s go, Dr. Parker.”

He turns his back to the group of people and walks away, listening for the sound of Casey getting up and following him, but all he hears is Taryn and Dahlia cheering and clapping happily. Somewhere in the noise, there’s the sound of Nico’s happy laugh. Levi might be scared to death, but that makes him smile.

-

“C’mon, it’ll take, like, three seconds!”

“Yeah, but they’ll be three seconds of pain!”

Casey throws his hands in the air and groans, putting the scissors down and pinching the bridge of his nose.

Levi is ashamed at how difficult he’s making this, he realizes it’s absolutely ridiculous, but he can’t help it. His side doesn’t hurt anymore, the wound has healed up perfectly, and it’s about time he goes forward and leaves this horrible time behind him. He just doesn’t want any more sharp tools going near him.

“How is it possible that you’re a doctor, and you’re afraid of doctors?” Casey sighs.

“I’m not afraid,” Levi mumbles.

He’s sitting on the exam table with his shirt off, and he feels way too exposed. He covers his scar with his hand, trying to convey everything he can’t say out loud with his face. Casey just stares at him with a raised eyebrow.

“Look, I get it,” Casey gives up, climbing up onto the bed as well. “This isn’t just a random cut.”

Levi looks up, surprised. He was expecting Casey to yell at him until he submitted, but the soft understanding feels much better. He shrugs, crossing his legs underneath himself. The paper covering the table crinkles with his movements.

“It’s just…” he tries, then hangs his head in defeat. “I feel like if I don’t have something to show for it, it’ll be like it hasn’t happened.”

“You’ll still have one hell of a scar,” Casey argues.

“Scars heal.”

Casey leans his head forward to get in Levi’s line of vision. They stare at each other in silence for a few seconds, then Casey smiles and puts one hand on Levi’s shoulder, squeezing it and giving it a firm pat. Levi feels like he’s staring right into his soul.

“You’ll heal too,” Casey says easily.

Levi opens his mouth to say something, anything, but nothing comes out. That shouldn’t hit as deep as it does, but Levi finds himself rolling his eyes to the ceiling to avoid having them tear up. He chuckles but it sounds weak, and he suddenly wants to cry enough to make up for all the times he’s held back lately.

“You will,” Casey grabs Levi’s face and touches their foreheads together. “You’ll be okay.”

“I know,” Levi whispers.

“I think you needed to hear it from someone else.”

A few seconds of silence go by, then Casey smirks and Levi can’t control the choked laughter that bubbles out of him. He raises one hand to grab and squeeze the back of Casey’s neck, then they let go of each other and straighten themselves out.

“Alright,” Casey steps down from the table. He picks up the scissors again and snaps them open in front of Levi’s face. “Shall we?”

Levi groans and almost chases the thought that he might still manage to escape if he runs fast enough, but decides against it. He closes his eyes and lies down on his side, taking a deep breath before lifting his arm and baring his ribs for Casey to do whatever he wants with.

He can hear the noise of gloves snapping and he convinces himself he can feel Casey’s hands coming closer to him, so he holds his breath and braces himself for the inevitable burning sensation. Casey is one step ahead of him.

“Is Nico’s pizza as good as he says?” he asks, as if to make easy conversation.

Levi is forced to smile at that. “It really is. You guys are in for a treat.”

“I already can’t wait,” Casey hums.

Levi can’t either. Never in a million year would he have thought that he’d get the job of his dreams, the man of his dreams and a great group of friends all at the same time. If only he could tell his past self that this is what life had in store for him. So like, don’t worry or anything like that.

“Did you fall asleep?”

Levi shakes his head, focusing back on the task at hand. He’s about to reply to Casey’s accusation, but a sharp sting flares from his side before he can say anything. He yelps and goes to put his hands over his wound, but Casey is faster in covering it in gauze soaked in disinfectant.

It still burns a little, but at least it means that that’s it. It’s over. Levi no longer has strings coming out of him.

“There you go,” Casey slaps Levi’s ass when he’s done.

It makes more noise than it hurts, but Levi still sits up and glares at him. Casey just smiles easily, handing him his shirt back and taking his gloves off. When he’s done and Levi is fully dressed again, Casey extends one hand and nods his head towards the door.

“That hurt,” Levi puts, still accepting the hand and stepping off the table.

“Shut up,” Casey rolls his eyes.

He steps towards the door and pulls Levi along, ready to go back to work for the rest of the day. But not without threatening Levi to destroy him if he comes between him and his pizza night first. Levi is pretty sure he’s not joking.

-

“The owner of the restaurant called me today.”

Levi sets the last plate down on the table and turns to look at Nico, who’s kneading the pizza dough and glancing at him from the corner of his eye. Levi doesn’t need to ask what restaurant he’s talking about.

“Oh yeah?” he comes closer, leaning back against the counter. “What did he want?”

“Just wondering how you were doing.”

“Oh. Did you tell him I’m good?”

“I did,” Nico wipes his wrist over his forehead, leaving a trail of flour behind. “But are you?”

That feels way too deep of a question for how easy this evening is supposed to be. Levi clears his throat to avoid answering, looking around at the set table and at the pizza already cooking in the oven while he actually thinks about it.

“I am, of course,” he decides.

Nico hums.

“What?” Levi crosses his arms over his chest. “You don’t think I am?”

“I don’t think anything. I’m asking you.”

Levi considers it for a few seconds. He watches the way Nico’s biceps shift as he keeps kneading, and gets lost in how much he likes the image they must make, cooking together – okay, Levi’s just here for moral support and stealing tastes of the food – for Levi’s friends.

“I’m happy it’s over,” Levi finally says. “I can just move on now.”

Nico nods, pressing the dough down into the pan with his fingers.

“I agree,” he says. “So can you promise me I’m not going to get any more calls that you’ve fainted in the E.R.?”

Levi feels self-conscious at that. He scratches the side of his head and shuffles his feet, while Nico turns to look at him with an amused smirk.

“Can I ask what was up with all of that?” Nico sets the pizza pan aside and fully turns around. “The rebelling and doing everything you weren’t supposed to do.”

“I don’t know,” Levi sighs. “I guess I didn’t like you telling me what I could and couldn’t do.”

“I was just trying to look out for you.”

“It felt condescending. I know it wasn’t, but that’s what it felt like.”

Nico obviously doesn’t understand what he means, but he doesn’t necessarily need to.

“Was there anything I could have done to avoid having you reacting like that?”

Levi smiles, raises his shoulders up to his ears. “Probably not. I’m just a horrible patient.”

“You were hurt,” Nico takes one step closer. “I was just really worried, like, all the time.”

Not knowing how to answer that, and kind of hating how it makes his stomach sink a little, Levi hoists himself up onto the counter he’s leaning against and spreads his legs, motioning for Nico to come between them.

“You know I always appreciate everything you do, even if I don’t say it,” Levi mumbles.

Nico smiles and dips his head, catching Levi’s lips in a soft kiss that still manages to leave him breathless. Levi melts into it, leaning forward and sliding his arms over Nico’s shoulders to cross his wrists behind his neck.

He barely has a second to think before he feels Nico’s flour covered hands creep their way under his shirt. He gasps and tries to push him away, but Nico is way stronger than him, and he keeps him where he is by grabbing his hips.

“Why,” Levi complains loudly, half-heartedly beating his fists on Nico’s back.

“I _knead_ you,” Nico whispers in his ear.

Levi laughs loudly and grabs Nico’s wrists, but makes no move to stop his hands from going over his ribs. Nico hesitates when his fingers graze where a huge bandage used to be. The scar is still fresh and tender, and it sends a shiver up Levi’s spine.

“It’s all good,” Levi assures him, nudging his hands to keep him going. “Let’s get _saucy_.”

It’s Nico’s turn to snort, stepping all the way in and wrapping his arms around him. Their hips fit together perfectly, but Levi only has time to hook one leg around Nico before the oven timer is going off, effectively scaring both of them so much they spring apart.

“And you call me _cheesy_ ,” Nico smirks as he slips his hands inside his oven mittens.

Levi groans and rolls his eyes, but still watches the way Nico closes the oven door with his hip, lower lip caught between his teeth in focus. He swings his legs and hits his heels on the cabinets under him just so he can stick his tongue out at Nico when he sends him a dirty look.

“Stop destroying my kitchen,” Nico admonishes him.

“Entertain me, then!” Levi exclaims, kicking his legs out to prove his point.

Nico sighs exaggeratedly, but he’s still smiling. He picks up a piece of crust from the pizza he’s been cutting, then holds it in front Levi’s mouth. “Taste,” he tells him.

Levi takes the piece between his teeth, chews it for a few seconds, pretending to think about whether he likes it or not. Nico stares at him expectantly, raising one eyebrow as he waits for a verdict.

“It’s great, of course,” Levi decides, giving a thumbs up with both hands.

Nico hums in satisfaction, doing quick work of sticking the newer pizza into the oven. Levi licks his lips clean of the grease and texts Taryn to tell them to hurry up. Barely thirty seconds go by before the doorbell rings.

Levi steps off the counter and shrugs as an answer to Nico’s questioning look, then goes to open the door. There they are, his colleagues and friends, creepy smiles pasted on their faces, basically vibrating in their places with excitement. Pizza does that to overworked, sleep-deprived, hungry interns.

-

“I could kiss him,” Dahlia moans. “I’m gonna kiss him.”

“No you’re not,” Levi frowns.

He’s lying down on the couch, legs falling across Casey’s lap. Dahlia and Taryn are sprawled on the floor, and they’re all drunk on pizza. And maybe a few bottles of beer. A few dozens. Mostly pizza.

“I’ll kidnap him and have him make pizza for me every day,” Taryn nods.

“That can be arranged,” Levi shrugs.

Taryn leans her head back and looks up. Levi chuckles at her upside down face and throws a balled up tissue her way. He misses so badly that it lands in Dahlia’s lap, but it’s the thought that counts.

“Do you guys want anything else?” Nico appears in the living room, towel in his hands and an amused look on his face.

“No, thank you, kind deity,” Casey answers. “We’re just gonna go.”

They start the process of detangling their limbs, but Nico stops them before they can get too far.

“Nonsense,” he waves to make them settle back down. “You can crash here tonight. I’m gonna get you some more pillows and blankets.”

He leaves just as fast as he’d appeared, everybody’s heads following his retreating figure with awe in their eyes.

“Can we all marry him?” Dahlia whispers.

“Yeah,” Levi grunts as he throws himself off the side of the couch. “I’ll start.”

They all whoop and yell obscene things behind his back as he walks down the hallway, but he only has one thing swirling around in his head. The beer is making his thoughts seem much more reasonable than they probably are, but he feels great.

“Going to lie down?” Nico intercepts him, walking the opposite direction.

“Oh I’ll lie down alright,” Levi mumbles.

Nico laughs at him, but Levi ignores him in favour of using his whole body weight to open the bedroom door. As it turns out, it’s already open, and Levi ends up face planting on the bed. The softness of the duvet feels like heaven on his tired face, and he almost falls asleep like that.

The feeling of somebody pulling his shoes off startles him awake, but he settles back down when he realizes it’s just Nico. He has no idea what he’s doing and why, but he’s sure it can’t be that bad.

“Lift your hips for me?” Nico asks quietly.

Levi groans and struggles to slide his hands underneath himself to undo his pants himself. He rolls onto his back and shimmies until Nico has mercy on him and helps him take them off.

“I’m all yours,” Levi spreads his arms and legs as far as he can go.

“I appreciate that,” Nico muses.

Levi hears the noise of Nico’s clothes hitting the floor, so he morphs his face in what he hopes is an attractive expression. He takes a deep breath and anticipates the sting of the scar on his side stretching, but it never comes. He smiles to himself when he realizes it really is over.

“Take me, then,” Levi’s answer is a bit delayed.

“Alright,” Nico goes along with it as he climbs into bed as well. “Where to?”

“Don’t waste time making jokes.”

Nico reaches the head of the bed, slides his legs under the blankets and manhandles Levi until he’s mostly covered too. “Are you on a rush or something?”

“No,” Levi decides, cuddling into Nico’s warm form beside him.

“No?” Nico repeats.

“Shut up,” Levi frowns. “I’m trying to sleep.”

“I thought you wanted me to take you?”

Levi thinks about it. He lifts one arm and it feels like he’s climbing a mountain, so he gives up. Nico is nice and warm and firm though, so he wiggles until he wraps an arm around him.

“Maybe tomorrow,” he sighs.

“Alright,” Nico pats his back and leans in to kiss his forehead. “Do you think you’re going to have a nightmare tonight?”

It feels like too serious of a question for Levi’s foggy mind, but when he thinks about it, the answer doesn’t feel as serious. Is he completely over being stabbed in the middle of the street? No, definitely not. Is he going to sleep soundly tonight, finally stitches-free? Hell yeah.

“I’m gonna dream of pizza.”

The last thing he hears before falling asleep is Nico’s laugh, and maybe the sound of somebody falling over in the living room. It all makes happiness flutter in his stomach.

**Author's Note:**

> And this is it! My little AU in which I felt the need to hurt poor Levi for no reason other than the fact that I could lol I couldn't let it end without throwing some sweet fluff into it, it wouldn't have been a work by me lol  
> Also, there is [this amazing fanart that @i_i_luc_i_i did on instagram](https://www.instagram.com/p/B0Lau08hgaj/), and I asked their permission to link it here because it just fits too perfectly lol
> 
> I hope you enjoyed it! If you did, let me know on [Tumblr](https://shesbreathless.tumblr.com/)! <3


End file.
